The decisive steps in Vettel’s Ferrari F1 disappointments

It was a different Sebastian Vettel who moved to Ferrari: a driver who knew what he wanted and how to get it, full of the confidence and commanding influence four world championships could bring. ROBERTO CHINCHERO recalls that the mission was nothing less than to recreate the glory days of Michael Schumacher. What could possibly go wrong?

Luke Skywalker, George Bailey, Maverick, Neo, Captain America… even Bill and Ted. It’s a trope of Hollywood screenwriting that at some point the hero is sorely tested, plunged into a transformative ordeal – and then, from the depths of despair, they rise again to be triumphant. For Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari, though, the final act in the drama didn’t conform to this Aristotlean ideal.

The story of Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari was one of a professional relationship undercut by,  as ever with Maranello, a strong element of passion. The relationship had moments of great exaltation and bitter disappointments, quickly reaching its first victories and slowly fading towards a divorce that wasn’t without controversy. Inhabiting the story was a driver with a strong personality and a team with a complicated dynamic, constantly under powerful spotlights which amplified any success but mercilessly exposed any perceived shortcomings.